Strike Magazine Chattanooga Issue 02 by Strike Magazines

A Letter from the Editor: by Marli Giedt There is something so fascinating about observing as a toddler plays. Watching a child that can barely manage to put single vowels and consonants together is somehow exciting. Their gaze unwavering, they look around, distracted by the bright hues of the shapes and noises around them. They speak fluently with their eyes. You can almost hear their brain scanning the vibrancy of their environment; it clicks, beeps, and processes each pixel of color it encounters. When I watch children play, it brings back the distant feeling of being that young and unknowing myself. I remember playing with the same rectangles of crisp red, yellow, and blue. I was enamored by how they fit into one another so perfectly, their edges creating linear boundaries rather than allowing their colors to drip into one another. Nothing was more captivating than color—seeing it create patterns as single blocks became castles and marks of crayon on paper became flowers. As I grew older, I began to learn the rules and restrictions of color. I learned about primary colors that mix with one another to make secondary colors. I discovered the color wheel, and I began to understand the formulas of color. To reach the shade of one, you must add another. I understood it as a science, structured and methodical. The first time I felt a shift in my perceived idea of color was when I was told that everyone sees it differently. The thought consumed my brain. Color had always held a level of definition to it—it was a universal human experience. To find that color is much more subjective than I had previously thought was slightly jarring. When I am seeing bright tomato red, is someone else seeing the rich crimson of blood? Have we just agreed that certain objects are consistent in color, so we assign them labels of ‘orange’ or ‘green’ without acknowledging that our eyes could be interpreting reflections of light entirely differently? The concept of color is heavily influenced by perspective. Although each person can recognize their surroundings by agreed-upon titles of complexion and shade, there is a level of dissonance we all have from one another as we view our world through a unique lens. Color can no longer fit within its previously assigned parameters. The blocks we once played with—which held their vibrant pigments so perfectly within their confines—have now lost their shape. Color cannot be defined; it can only be interpreted. The same idea can be applied to perspective. There is no one way that our varying point of views can be plainly put to words and expected to be fully understood by others. Our personal perspectives will always be slightly limited in that way. The more detached we can become from our own interpretations of the spaces we occupy, the more we can begin to understand life through the eyes of someone else. This is not something we should necessarily aim to achieve, but it is something to be considered. There is a place of equilibrium to be found that lies between the way we as individuals think and an openness to the viewpoints of others. In this publication, our goal is merely to explore the various perspectives that color provides us. We want to deep dive into the different feelings and thoughts that arise when greeted with each contrasting tone. In this magazine, you’ll find perspective in its most true form. With that, we give you Chroma.

Editor-in-Chief Marli Giedt

Photos by Lee Webb

Creative Director Maggie Schut

Externals Director Carianna Hunter

Photos by Carter Brownfield

ORANGE ORANGE /oranj/ Nostalgia personified; orange begins and ends the day reminding us all of life’s endless possiblities. -RC A kaleidoscope of hues that saturate the evening sky; orange is the spark that sets flame to the day. -SS 8

BEYOND

A SUN

SET As I drive to my hometown, I see a patch of tiger lilies, ditch lilies as we call them in Appalachia, on the side of the road. The beautiful orange-striped lilies remind me of two things: the first being that life and beauty can be found in the most unexpected places, and the second being my great-grandmother’s house. Grandmother, as we all called her, lived out in the country with no neighbors for a couple of miles on land that was all hers. She was already 100 years old when I was 8, but she still got up every morning to tend her garden herself and cook the most delicious food for everyone who came by. She was such an interesting woman; she remembered seeing a car for the first time as a child and living through the Great Depression with her children. There are so many questions I wish I would have asked her, but I was preoccupied with her garden. I remember running through

the grass and flowers as a child, the ditch lilies included, and feeding her pet donkey apples. The bright shade of tiger lilies reminds me of hot summer days playing on her farm and coming together as the sun began the set to eat dinner as a family. Autumn has always been my favorite season, and as the weather here starts cooling off, I can’t help but feel excitement bubble up inside me. Halloween has always been my favorite holiday, and though orange is one of the main colors of this spooky holiday, I somehow never paid very much attention to it. It was all around me, and I still didn’t seem to see it the way it deserved to be. The warm shade of pumpkin makes me smell banana nut bread. It reminds me of the palpable electricity of kids and teens running through the suburbs all dressed up in costumes that aren’t really all that warm. Written by Reese Cavitt

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The chill is part of the fun, it makes you want to run faster from house to house collecting all the treats and laughs you can manage. Once you get home and wrap up in blankets, you trade candy with Spooky Godmother or Scream on in the background. Being in college for three years now, I have handed out a fair amount of candy in the same suburb I myself used to run through all dressed up. Watching the juveniles run round and round the neighborhood through the three floor to ceiling windows in the living room of my childhood home, I can still feel the pulsating optimistic energy just the same as I did when I was on the other side. Pumpkin orange reminds us all to enjoy our company, our friends, and to enjoy what nature provides for us.

Growing into young adulthood, there have been many shades of orange that have helped sculpt me. The wispy hot orange that greets me every morning and kisses the sky goodnight every evening is definitely the most impactful. Sunrises remind me I am alive and that life isn’t always harsh, sometimes it is gentle. Sunsets are always completely breathtaking as they end the day in a vibrant ray of heat kissing the Earth good ‘morrow. I’ve fallen in love under vivid sunsets with the sun on my back, and I’ve felt like a forgotten doll on someone’s porch being bleached out by the sun. Orange holds more power over us than we realize; it is often in the backdrop for some of the most important moments of our lives. It’s also there for the little moments, just not so much in the forefront. I think orange has a lesson it wants to teach us: we all need to be more observant and bask in the present like we do the sun. So next time you watch the sun rise or set, and the color orange fills your gaze, remind yourself that you are alive.

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Brought on by the fierce shriek the fierce shriek Of the tiger lily growing in the ditch. Of the tiger She demands the attention demands attention Of all who cross her path. Smothering you in her cool grasp, smothering you She traps you in her liminal space, she traps Wishing for the night to envelop the night The bonfire bondage of the ending day. Of the ending day.

The day bookends itself in sherbet skies, The day Imploding into summer sunsets. Imploding into Floral aromas fill the air

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O r

O E

N A

O E

Roaming Among the Wildflowers Written by Susanna Skelton

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Photos by Carter Brownfield

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RED /red/ A signifer of life, mood and viability. The perceptual facet unites humanity and makes us whole. -BS The color of anger, deceit and power that has transcended over many lives. -AKA 19

Written by Bea Smith

The way we perceive, experience and interact with the world around us is greatly influenced by colors. They vary on a spectrum, each a reflection of a different wavelength. Associations are often made between a color and certain aspects of reality like emotion. Red tends to be linked with anger and passion, yet it has significantly more meaning than we prescribe to it. It is a color of purpose that brings us to life and maintains our body’s functioning. Just as we change over our lifetime, the importance of this color also changes as our development progresses. We begin this life intimately connected with our mothers, body within body, innately dependent on one another. Starting out the size of a seed, we blossom into a collection of flesh and bone. The crimson-tinted placenta anchoring us to the womb as we start to take form. Upon entering this world, we are born with skin red in color that indicates our blood is properly circulating. Though our blood and internal organs may not be directly observable to us, they remain beneath the surface. And in this way, red is a color we constantly carry within us. Of the many measures we have to determine our physical well-being, heartbeat could be considered the baseline. It is the measure between life or death; thus, the heart bears great power. When heart rate is elevated, one might assume that someone is excited or scared while a slow rate may suggest that the body is at rest. Out of all the organs, it works the hardest since it supplies the entire body with essential nutrients. The vibrant red of heart health is therefore representative of vitality and plays a significant role in our continual survival. Despite the fact we may all differ in outward appearance; we all share the same internal makeup. Yet, we are conditioned to compare ourselves to others, noting what makes us stand out in the process. People strive for authenticity because they fear being labeled a follower and want to control the way they are perceived. This persistent desire to be unique ultimately impacts the lens through which we view those around us. We categorize people into groups based on their style, demeanor, and how they express themselves which perpetuates the us vs. them mentality. In order to close the gap wedged between us, we must learn to recognize the facets that we all have in common, the most basic being our blood. No matter our age, gender, or the color of our skin we all bleed red. Our blood serves as a unifier among the billions of people that exist on Earth.

2020

As we age, we become more emotionally intelligent and are able to determine how people may be feeling. With this heightened awareness, we can better distinguish certain emotions from others based on subtle shifts in tone of voice, body language and facial expressions. This is a time in which red’s function begins to shift from being physical to conceptual. It becomes a part of our path toward achieving self-actualization. We are no longer looking to others to inform our perspective and instead are becoming distinct individuals, capable of understanding our potential. Complexion generally helps us in deciding whether someone is healthy; however, it can also serve as a manifestation of emotion. People’s cheeks tend to turn rosy when they are blushing but appear bright red when embarrassed. They may look pink when your body is trying to warm itself up or if it is overheating. Our bodies are always reacting to the interactions we have and adapting to the type of environment we are in. Red therefore becomes linked to our experiences and emerges from within as an outward form of expression. Love is quite possibly the strongest emotion we have the chance at experiencing. It is a concept usually associated with the heart, seeing as it can break if overcome with extreme distress. We say things like ‘my heart longs for’, ‘heartbreak’, and ‘the heart wants what it wants.’ When around someone we love, our heart beats faster because our bodies are flooded with neurotransmitters that further intensify our passion. Lots of internal changes take place when we are in love, we just may be unable to recognize them. The color red is what drives our life cycle. It is the force behind our love, a sign of livelihood and vitality, the result of a reciprocal relationship between body and environment. It has depth we never credit it with, so we end up taking it for granted. And until we learn to embrace things for all that they are, we will never truly appreciate them.

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Written by AK Anderson

Flashing forward to modern times, this stereotype still has lasting effects, yet the maltreatment of black women manifests in many different ways. For years, Nicki Minaj was criticized for her outspoken behavior. In the 2015 VMAs, Minaj posted a series of tweets proclaiming her anger at not being chosen for Song and Video of the Year. Immediately, many other artists such as Taylor Swift, responded that her behavior was unclassy and she was pitting women against each other. This is a common theme for Minaj, where her words are twisted and she is told she is being a diva for standing up for her work and her craft. Not to mention, being one of the first female rappers to be so successful, she has had to create her own path. Many other black female rappers have had to deal with this same backlash, while seeing their male counterparts never to face this. In the same way that society has tried to control black women to be passive and quiet, tokenism of black women has arisen. Tokenism is the symbolic effort of using a minority to put up a false sheet of representation and diversity. Those who do it tend to use it to appear “woke” or to appease the masses. Black men and women are often used as token characters or people in dominantly white environments. By using black people, those surrounded by that token person can have the impression of seeming “woke” and building the assurance of diversity. Tokenism is extremely detrimental to modern society and often goes right under the nose of those surrounded by it. By having a minority side character to provide comic relief or serve as a fan favorite, directors fail to examine the implications of these characters that have consequences that reach far beyond the screen. An example of this is within the popular tv series “The Vampire Diaries.” Actress Kat Graham who plays Bonnie in TVD is very outspoken about how she was treated during her time working on the series. “The Vampire Diaries” is based off of a book series. In this series, Bonnie, Kat Graham’s character, was a red-headed, white girl. The producers aimed to be applauded for their “brave” choice to cast a single person of color, so the producers of the show chose to cast Kat Graham as their token minority for the entire show. An important note to further solidify this idea is that no other person of color held an important role within the show. This is only one example in one show during the 21st century, a time that many people would declare as a more progressive and forward thinking time. This goes to show how many people’s mindsets are still rooted in racism, even if what they are doing is seen as “progressive.”

From the early 2000s into today, tokenism has become more and more a part of the media we consume. The kind of media that we consume reflects the actions and mindsets that we have. It is essential that those who control the media and are at the forefront of society are those who are aiming to break stereotypes and biases. How can we stop this stereotype from continually being reinforced in our society? It starts with you and the conversations you have with others. You must have the ability to look yourself in the mirror and understand that you may be a part of the issue. Unconscious biases can still affect others and have the exact same negative consequences as someone who is consciously aware of the issues they create. If you see someone try to justify any stereotype, kindly remind them of the issues this creates. You can explain how even if they don’t mean to, they are contributing to a vicious cycle. Education, reflection, and compassion for those with not as much education as you are essential in understanding how we can break the cycle of stereotypes. Today, it seems like society is at war within itself to see who can be the most “woke” person in the room. This is only a war of appearances; it is driven by selfishness and an overt need for bringing attention to yourself instead of the issue you are seemingly supporting. We must look within ourselves and ask where our support comes from. If no one knew what you did for racial equality, if no one would ever find out, would it matter to you?

BLACK & WHITE /blak en (h)wit/ The absence of perceived color; the void between brackets of defintion or familiarity. -HB

Photos by Lee Webb

Wrirten by Hanna Bradford

Pondering the idea of binaries, I began learning about the very vast subject in a very ignorant state. I wasn’t confident any binary of any kind applied to me. I don’t identify as non-binary, which I truly thought was the cieling of the Pondering the idea of binaries, I began learning concept. Upon reaching for more substanceabout for my thewritvery vast subject in a very ignorant state. I wasn’t ing, I found that binaries are two things thatconfident cannot exist any binary of any kind applied to me. I don’t at the same time. There is a lack of coexisting, understandidentify as non-binary, which I truly thought was the ing and civility. This seemed pretty simple to grasp.ofThink cieling the concept. Upon reaching for more substance night and day, political parties, gender. Thefor oppressed and I found that binaries are two things that my writing, the oppressor. A much heavier one. I find binaries be at the same time. There is a lack of coexisting, cannotto exist pretty complex, actually; it has taken me way too long to and civility. This seemed pretty simple to understanding, sit and write about them. I also have an interesting feeling grasp. Think night and day, political parties, gender. The of fear towards them. They can be harmful,oppressed if allowed and the oppressor. A much heavier one. I find consumption of self. I’ve come to the decision that binaries binaries to be pretty complex, actually; it has taken me way are inevitable. They are in nature, they are taught at ato sit and write about them. I also have an intertoo long very young age and their function in societyesting is seemingly feeling of fear towards them. They can be harmful, if crucial. Learning that there is no abolishment of these allowed consumption of self. I’ve come to the decision that binaries, my mind has gone further to understand the binarieshow are inevitable. They are in nature, they are taught world can learn to not identify with them, but just age, and their function in society seemingly at a rather very young acknowledge that they are essential. crucial. Learning that there is no abolishment of these binaries, my mind has gone further to understand how the My first assumption about the strange manner thatcan learn to not identify with them, but rather just world humans take up with binaries is that it is justacknowledge a lack of that they are essential. understanding. We don’t understand why they exist, so Mywe first assumption about the strange manner abuse them. This isn’t a conviction, rather just thatobservation. humans take up with binaries is that it is just a lack of Think of gender for a moment. People haveunderstanding. evolved genderWe don’t understand why they exist, so we constructs in a drastic way in a very short time. Members abuse them. This isn’t a conviction, rather just observation. of society are identifying as non-binary, transgender and for a moment. People have evolved gender Think of gender other terms that describe how they feel the constructs most them-in a drastic way in a very short time. Members selves. While many celebrate this progression gender, of of society are identifying as non-binary, transgender, and there is a struggling force. Why? Why are there otherindividuals terms that describe how they feel the most themwho go even further than just refusing to support, believ-many celebrate this progression of gender, selves. While ing these identities should not exist? Some there wouldiscall it a struggling force. Why? Why are there individuals fear of the unknown, which could very wellwho be the go case. even further than just refusing to support, believI wouldn’t play the oppressors as fools, however. There ing these identities should not exist? Some would call it is an internal source of conflict, in every being, feels fear that of the unknown, which could very well be the case. someone unlike self cannot be in the same space. I wouldn’t play the oppressors as fools, however. There is an internal source of conflict, in every being, that feels someone unlike self cannot be in the same space.

As a concerned individual who supports the maskmandate, I feel a twang of… judgement? Apprehensiveness? A lack of comprehension when an individual passes me in the grocery store unmasked with a MAGA hat on. Now, I know this is wrong. I don’t know that rebel in the slightest, but I still have particular feelings about the way they present themselves. I do believe this is where nature comes into play. We learn from a fairly young age how to behave. Values, traditions, and thought patterns are passed on at a very early stage in life whether intetional or not. Based on your gender at birth, it is common to be assigned either blue or pink; receive either a tool kit or kitchenette as gifts; and wear clothes suggesting your gender. Other impactful issues, such as racism, can also be instilled at a very young age. It is not bizarre for children to grow up like their parents. I remember last summer, sitting in the back of my friend’s car, my hair whipping across my sunburnt face, fresh out of the river. We had fallen onto the topic of parents, and how much they shaped our minds in adolescence. My friend hadn’t spoken for a moment, and then said, “I think a very large aspect of becoming an adult is unlearning the things you don’t like about your parents.” Finding this harsh at first, I resumed fluttering my hand through the heavy air out the window. I had to sit with the idea that maybe there were some things about my home life that I did not necessarily agree with, and didn’t have to. Months later, I started tuning in to the 2020 election, and my relationship with my family changed drastically as we grew apart in ideas and values. We were learning to overcome these cemented binaries instilled into generations of our family, and find peace in the disruption of patterns.

While binaries are inevitable, they have caused a much larger divide in society than need be. The negative connotation around them is one that is man-made, due to a lack of empathy. I would imagine if someone looked at another person who was different from them with the intention to understand and learn, they would find a sense of clarity and compassion. It is quite alright to not fit into a certain binary, a box. The concept of binaries itself seems to strangle any sense of self-expression or true sense of humanity. It is quite possible human beings were not made to fit into a category of characteristics, and the most interesting humans I know have learned to disregard them completely. My most fond example of a binary is that of night and day. Surface level, it makes sense. Night and day do not occur at the same time.

I’ve been turning this thought around in my head the past few weeks, taking it with me on walks, out with friends and right before I go to bed. Just the other day I was on a walk, and it was surely mid-morning. Broad daylight. Looking up at the sky, the moon was sitting right in front of me, challenging the idea that it’s time on this side of the world was up. I’ve been waking up right before sunrise quite frequently as of late, more than likely a response to stress. I don’t mind, however, because I have the pleasure of seeing the violent colors in the sky before the soft, consistent blue comes. The stark reds and oranges and pinks put me in a trance each time. Same with sunset, all the colors of the day melting together before becoming a thick black. Two things that cannot exist at the same time… and yet, there they are, making the most beautiful skies I have ever seen together.

Photos by Molly Bowman

GREEN /gren/ Where my troubles and worries lay far at bay, green is the color that has been with me all my days. -MM Green is the color of nature and man. Green can be leaves, trees and even lush springs. It is also the color of money. Green breaks the back of the modern day citizen, so it can line the pockets of the rich. To be green is to be manipulated. -KZ

Written by Kushi Zaver

: N E GRE A DOUBLE D E G D E SWORD

You’re laying in a warm meadow, your toes are touching the grass and the wind is breezing through your clothes, transporting you into a state of total bliss. You and the earth and the sky are connected. Your body is not yours, but a mere extension of the Earth itself; your soul is singing with the wind. There’s honeysuckle in the air, and the music of nature vibrates around you. Birds are chirping. A stream is bubbling. That is when you hear it: a light buzz growing louder and louder and louder. Suddenly, you’re running, trampling through the forest into the unknown .Little do you know that your pocket of peace is gone forever. There you are lost and hungry. What you just experienced was how countless animals feel when their homes are snatched away from them at the hands of habitat destruction. Destruction caused by an unquenchable thirst for profit. The greed that is consuming our society is turning our once luscious green forests into dusty, dreadful dead zones. Green is the color of a double-edged sword. Grass, trees, and even bodies of water can be green, but you know what else is green? Money. That one simple word that seems to make the world spin on its axis. Money may not grow on trees, but it sure is wiping them out. Green and greed go hand in hand because of money. Everyone wants it and nobody can have enough of it. Capitalism seems to place greater importance on monetary gain than anything else. Whether it be capitalism or some other political, economic system, money is driving a wedge between people and into the planet. We are allowing a concept we created to destroy our vibrantly green Earth. Why? Perhaps it’s because big CEO’s are green with envy. Maybe they’re jealous that their competitors’ value just went up or their other rich friend just bought a trip to space and a plot of land on Mars. Is it just a competition between the elite to see who can be the most filthy rich? Big corporations are arguably the biggest cause for the world turning to ash. They use resources like no other. They create toxic waste and dump it into our water supply. They exploit their fellow man for labor only to pay them pennies, if even that. Speaking of resources, we are running out. Species are dying out, the oil supply is drying up, and the world is turning into a hot gas bubble. Global warming will probably knock out most of our crops and our people, but nobody seems to care. People acknowledge that this is happening, and that it’s bad, but they choose to greenwash the issues.

We are allowing a concept we created to destroy our vibrantly green earth.

WHY?

They put metal straws into their plastic coffee cups to make themselves feel as if they are making a difference, but nobody actively brings their own reusable cup as a replacement. This may have to do with the fact that caring about the environment is “trendy” right now. It’s cool to care, or it’s cool to at least act like you care. It’s almost ironic that a color as peaceful as green is associated with both nature, and the very thing that is destroying it. Money is made from cotton, but what if the cotton plants die out because of global warming? Big corporations are single handedly destroying themselves. While a lot of people are just pretending to care about the environment, it is cool to care! This planet is our home! Imagine a world where you can’t go to the beach, a world where you can’t eat out or even a world where you can’t go outside. We should care about the planet now so that our younger siblings, hell even our kids, can live in a world where they don’t have to grow up inside because the Earth is in shambles.

There are ways you can help. You can vote for officials who support causes to lessen climate change. Support people who support you and not money-munching corporations. You can research companies before you buy from them to make sure they are ethical and sustainable- who cares if they are more expensive? Those items are made to last forever, and trust me you don’t need the trendiest shirt. You’ll wear it once and never again; I know we’ve all been there and done that. Fast fashion is not hot. The best place to start doing better is in your home; replace disposable items such as paper towels and plastic wrap with reusable towels and beeswax wrap. Realistically, you should be purchasing these from ethical brands as well. It may seem like a lot to take in at once, but do what you can. We are not perfect, but we can all do better for ourselves, and to keep the planet green.

Written by Madison Meadows

As I soak in the paint that lathers the walls of my room, I’ve decided that I love the color lime green. I adore the way it pains my eyes, like a highlighter but ten times more bright. At this moment, eight years of age, I realize that lime green means happiness. Looking back on the confusion and trials of my adolescence, one thing remained: each day I came home to my room, garnished with lime green walls piercing through me. It was as if they greeted me, “Welcome home! I know it’s been a rough day, but you can escape here. Let the comfort of your room and light from your walls be a place of happiness for you.” And so it was. It may seem quite dramatic, but lime green became an emblem of comfort, peace and serotonin for me. But then it sort of faded. I grew up. My teenage years quickly sprung upon me, and accompanied with them came the pressure to not be so loud, to dilute myself. My brain, aided by my rocky self esteem, had convinced me that as a girl, I should make my thoughts quieter, demeanor gentler and expressions softer. I fell victim to what the eyes of others expected from me. So, I took it upon myself to make sure my room matched the lies that I was feeding myself: I had to be perfect and effortless, never with a flaw. As a young woman who valued the opinions of others before her very own, these were easy, beginner tricks to be deceived by.

I bid farewell to the innocence and naivety of my lime green room; I layered on new coats of a soft jade tone. I appreciated its relaxing appeal. Although it lacked the spark my original walls once had, I did not know what I was missing. At sixteen, I hadn’t quite matured enough to know what it was like to want my younger self back. My classic eccentric green was gone, and I thought my new walls were more mature, less flashy. But in reality, they were just boring. Now, I sit surrounded by my four dorm walls, reminiscent of my zesty childhood bedroom, where nightmares couldn’t exist and my fears of the future didn’t keep me up at night. The allusion of my muted, earthy green walls of my later teen years were indeed beautiful, and I reckon I did need a change. However, I lost myself in the pursuit of trying to age into the cool teenager with a perfectly curated life. I was once focused on dimming my brightness, lowering the levels of green in my life. Currently at nineteen, my walls aren’t nearly as dull and subdued as before, but they certainly aren’t lime. That’s what life is for me right now: finding the sage in it all. Sage for me is a medium, a feeling between self-confidence and solitude, joy and reluctance. It is for when I feel bright as a star, but also dark, in an Everest green way. Sage is simple, and I think I’ve found my new favorite shade of green again. In the end, all it takes is a paintbrush, determination and a vision. All of us can reshape our lives and pick a different shade of green. Green in all of its eternity shifts, just like you and the journeys that await us all.

Photos by Lee Webb

BLUE /bloo/ The darkest raging storm and the simple peace of the sea. Indeed, both are possible. Blue is the melancholy woven into the fabric of the euphoric. -AAR

Deep Sea Diving: Deep Sea Diving: A Reflective Look at the Portrayal of Self

Reflective Look at

the Portrayal of Self Written by Aubrey Anne Ross

Written by Aubrey Anne Ross

Writte

The color blue displays itself all around us. In the everpresent, ever changing sky, in the peace of still water and in the deep darkness of the ocean. Blue is also the color of hope on a cloudy day. It permeates every aspect of our lives, and I can’t think of the color blue without thinking of rain. I think of the cool droplets falling down in sheets blurring the lines of the world. I love how the sky is right before rain. There’s a certain electricity to it all. The wind blows, the sky shakes and the water falls. Pretty soon a puddle begins to form, and it slowly grows until it’s big enough for splashing. If you looked down you’d see the sky reflected back at you along with your own reflection. Who is this person you are looking at? The distance between the puddle and the clouds above span a lifetime. How vast is the distance between who we are and the person we see reflected back to us?

In the puddle I see a younger version of myself. I see the fairy wings I wore on Halloween one year. Blue here is childlike wonder and nostalgia. In the dark storm clouds I am 15, and the world seems sadder than it should. Blue here is the joy in melancholy. In the kind blue of my mother’s eyes, I am 20 and the world is now more happy than not. Blue here is hopeful. The color blue, like the expression of self, comes in many different forms. This doesn’t mean it’s not the same color, it is just presented in another way.

Written by Aubrey Anne Ross

We are made up of all the younger versions of ourselves. This thought can trigger complex feelings. Luckily, like shades of color and identities, emotions are meant to be felt on a spectrum as well. The correspondence between the shades of blue and the range of emotions is breathtaking. It is a beautiful thing to use color to describe feelings.

en by Aubrey Anne Ross

Alas, describing feelings is never easy. Sometimes I feel like nobody knows who I truly am. I feel that others’ view of me is a warped reflection of the person that I am inside. This can be a hard thing to grapple with. Just as the shades of blue span a continuum, so do our identities. We can present ourselves differently to so many people. When you first meet someone, you see just what they allow you to see. Just like how only the tip of an iceberg shows, there is much more depth to that person than what meets the eye. We can never know the vastness of a person’s sea, but we can try. We can try to be understanding as we get to know the different layers and complexity of a person. Acceptance of self is something that I’ve been thinking alot about lately. We are with ourselves to the very end of time, and without self acceptance this will be a long and arduous journey! Accepting yourself just the way you are even if you feel like you’re not perceived the way you want to be is so important. Contentment spurs from the realization that the reflection and the self don’t always have to match up. All that matters is being okay with who you are inside. I believe we have the strength within us to reach this peace. One shade of blue isn’t less than the other just because it is shown at a different time. Life comes in stages and feelings in waves; who are we to be limited to one definition of color?

CREDITS ORANGE

GREEN

Concept: Maggie Schut Styling: Joshua Cleveland Layout: Callie High, CJ Barney Production: Matt Crowe, Maddi Ammons, Maddi Thompson Hair & Makeup: Carianna Hunter, Alyssa Reynolds

Concept: Marli Giedt Styling: John Everett Helm, Rian Blackman Layout: Molly Bowman, Maddie Nunnery Production: Maddi Thompson, Anna Jones Hair & Makeup: Marli Giedt

RED

BLUE

Concept: Maggie Schut Styling: Caroline Bowden, Irene Park Layout: Aisy Nix, Marley Hillman Production: Tara Tavanapour, Aisy Nix, Maggie Schut Hair & Makeup: KateLynn Fronabarger, Irene Park

Concept: Marli Giedt Styling: Finn Jackson, Ed Phillips Layout: KateLynn Fronabarger, Emma Soefker Production: Maddi Thompson, Maggie Schut, Marli Giedt Hair & Makeup: Carianna Hunter

BLACK & WHITE Concept: Maggie Schut, Aisy Nix Styling: Ragan Baker, Grant McGuire Layout: Silvey McGregor Production: Maddi Thompson, DD Hailey, Sydney Gibson, Marli Giedt Hair & Makeup: Carianna Hunter, KateLynn Fronabarger

SPECIAL THANKS TO L I F E S T Y L E H OT E L DOWNTOWN CHATTANOOGA

1220 King Street 423-664-1180 *Complimentary cocktails served upon check in*